Celebrating the craft at Ollesummer

  • 2015-06-04
  • By TBT staff

TALLINN - In its four days, the Ollesummer beer festival will host more than 60,000 visitors and nearly one hundred artists from both Estonia and abroad. The grand event will feature at least seven differently themed stages this year as well; once again, awesome artists from abroad are expected to perform on the festival’s main stage.
The word “Ollesummer” was first uttered 25 years ago when the National Old Fashioned Beer and Folksy Song Tour (Vanaviisi üle-eestiline olle- ja rahvalike laulude turnee) took the country by storm. Starting from 1994, the festival is organized by the company Meediaekspress OU, and, as from 1996, Ollesummer proclaims Tallinn Song Festival Grounds as its official home.

Placebo, one of the biggest and most unique stars of contemporary rock, is to perform on Ollesummer’s opening day on July 1. Romantic, rebellious, thespian - Placebo has remained a top artist in rock music with a message, inspiring multitudes of new wave alternative bands.
Ollesummer that takes place on July 1-4 at Tallinn’s Song Festival Grounds is also in the final stages of negotiations with other foreign stars. Last year, the festival’s top attractions included Bastille and Hurts, and the year before the last Pet Shop Boys.

Placebo’s musical face and stage image have always emphasized the dynamism of poignant depressive rock. A number of critics agree that the leader of the group Brian Molko stands as modern day’s last superstar of gothic, punk and glam rock.
The original sound of Placebo driven by Brian Molko is influenced by trailblazers like David Bowie, The Cure, Nirvana, Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins, and many more.  
The success story of the group that by today has fathered seven albums started in 1996 with the release of their first LP. Right at the very beginning of their musical journey, Placebo was lucky enough to share the stage with music icons such as Dawid Bowie and The Cure.

Placebo continued on the road of glam rock in their second album as well. Among other things, the band recorded a cover version of 20th Century Boy by T. Rex for the soundtrack of the infamous movie Velvet Goldmine. The group’s superhit Every You Every Me gained exceeding fame during the same year.
Among the band’s subsequent albums, Meds, a rumination on drugs, addiction, and pain of loss released in 2006, remains critically most acclaimed. One of the group’s most famous songs – a cover version of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill – also debuts on this album.

Placebo, continuously touring the world’s largest stages, released Loud Like Love, its last studio album to date, in 2013.
Ollesummer’s key performer on the last day of the festival, July 4 is The Cardigans. This will be the first performance in Estonia for The Cardigans that gained wind beneath their wings with their single Lovefool from the movie Romeo + Juliet.
The most well-known songs of The Cardigans whose stardom kick-started in the 1990s include My Favourite Game, Erase/Rewind, and Carnival.

After a long period of silence, The Cardigans delighted their fans by returning to the world’s stages two years ago. The band is now enjoying a newly found impetus and is to perform both the group’s golden hits as well as more recent music at Ollesummer.

The Swedish band was formed in 1992 and has retained its original membership to this day. The Cardigans gained elevated fame with their second album Life that featured the hit single Carnival. The group owes its stellar breakthrough in 1997 to the Hollywood blockbuster Romeo + Juliet starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The Cardigans’ Lovefool was included in the movie’s soundtrack, ensuring fame for the group on both sides of the Atlantic.

The Cardigans’ 1998 album featured the band’s second hit single My Favourite Game, the memorable video of which was directed by Jonas Akerlund. This celebrated Swedish director is behind the best music videos by artists such as Madonna, Moby, Lady Gaga, Roxette, and many more. The same album also includes Erase/Rewind that remains as an often played song on many radio stations.

The group’s 1998 album was followed by nearly ten years of the band members trying their luck at various solo projects, coming together only to make the Long Before Daylight album that was released in 2003. As from 2012, The Cardigans is back as a performer on the world’s largest stages.

A total of more than 100 artists will perform on Ollesummer’s seven stages. The wide selection of different musical styles includes pop and rock, jazz and club, as well as alternative music.  
 For years, an amusement park offering bungee jumping opportunities for adults and various attractions for children has been a stable part of the festival.